Why does my home care agency miss so many family calls after hours?
By the Margin Media team · Updated
Home care agencies miss family calls after hours because families ring when their own day ends, and the office closed hours earlier. The call reaches a voicemail or an on-call phone already busy with caregiver and client matters. A family in a hurry rarely leaves a message. They ring the next agency on the list.
Why do families call in the evening?
Because that is when they can. An adult child spends the working day at their own job, visits a parent afterwards, sees that things can't go on as they are, and starts phoning once they are home. Weekends are the same: the visit happens on Saturday, and so does the call.
What happens to the call when the office is closed?
It goes one of three places, and you should know which. Ring your own number at nine at night and again on Sunday afternoon to find out.
- Voicemail: the family hears a greeting, hangs up and tries another agency.
- The on-call phone: whoever holds it is also handling late caregivers and shift changes, so a new enquiry gets a rushed answer or none.
- An answering service: a message is taken and waits until morning.
What are the ways to cover those hours?
There are three honest options. A paid on-call coordinator gives the best conversation and costs a wage, and one person still can't take two calls at once. An answering service catches the message but can't answer questions about your agency. An AI receptionist answers every call and can book the assessment, though some families will still want a person, and should get one.
How does Margin cover after-hours calls for a home care agency?
Margin sets up Mia, an AI receptionist, to answer in the agency's name day, night and weekends, or only the calls the office misses. She answers questions, takes messages and books an assessment onto the portal calendar, and the office is told. Anything urgent is passed straight to the team, and who that is gets agreed on the audit.
A caller who hangs up gets a text from the agency within a minute, once phone carriers have approved the agency's texting number, which can take days to a couple of weeks. Mia says she is an AI when asked.
What Margin sets up for this.
- Mia, the AI receptionist, on every call
- Missed calls texted back within a minute
- Booking onto your calendar
- Your portal: every call, text and booking
What a business needs is decided on its audit. It is a one-time setup fee and a monthly fee, with exact numbers on the audit.
How Margin works for home care agenciesSee the portal with a sample business
Related questions
Should a home care agency answer the phone around the clock?
For existing clients, an agency needs an on-call route anyway. For new families, a home care agency that answers in the evening and at weekends is there when the decision is being made. Whether a person or a receptionist service does it is a matter of budget.
Do families leave voicemails for home care agencies?
Some do, but a family ringing about home care for the first time has no tie to your agency and several other numbers in front of them. Check your own voicemail log against your missed calls to see how many callers left nothing.
What should a home care after-hours greeting say?
It should say the agency's name and offer help straight away. If a home care agency must use a recorded greeting, it should give a time when someone will call back and a route for existing clients with an urgent problem.